A hero and his shadow
by Mithrandir1776
Summary: When you played the Ocarina of Time and fought Dark Link, didn't you think there'd probably be some conversation in there? I mean, what does it mean to defeat one's shadow? Is it a physical challenge, or a psychological one? This story explores the banter as the two meet in battle.


"Who's there?"

"… I am here."

"Who are you?"

"I am everything you are not. I have a purpose; you are trying to be something you are not."

"… Who are you?"

"I was created for a purpose. When I was made, I was given a task, and Ganondorf prepared me for it in body and mind. In contrast, your parents clearly didn't want anything to do with you. The Deku Tree lied to you and told you that you were a Kokiri. Because of this, your childhood was miserable. You were left out and excluded by the other children, because you were different. The only one without a fairy, and that made you even more alone."

"He revealed his secrets to me wisely and in his own time. Besides, I had Saria."

"He only revealed _your_ secrets to you on his deathbed, and even then, only so he could send you on a wild goose chase."

"It wasn't a wild goose chase. I've come this far. I'm not giving up."

"'Come this far?' What, exactly, do you mean? A foolish little girl who fancied herself a sage convinced you that her idiotic dream was a prophecy; your quest is nothing but a display of her ignorance and your gullibility."

"My quest is righteous! I'm working toward defeating the King of Evil, who created you!"

"Righteous? What about the musician you drove mad with your Song of Storms and magical Ocarina? What about the Zora Princess, Ruto, whose heart you broke in exchange for a bauble? These are mere trifles of wickedness compared with the result of your 'righteous quest.' You unwittingly enabled Ganondorf to enter the Sacred Realm and obtain the Triforce of Power. What about the hundreds of lives he has claimed? What about the hundreds more who now serve him as Redeads? You are not righteous. You are as evil as I, and I am a creature molded from darkness in your image."

"…"

"What's this renewed vigor? What are you fighting for? Your Zora lover? But you don't love her. You are only using her. Neither do you love Zelda, whose dream began your disastrous quest. She is only using you. You loved Saria, and she will be a child forever. You thought your fate was the same, but you were deceived. The lies of the Deku Tree have ruined you forever. You have nothing left to fight for, and no courage left to fight for it. I see the fear in your eyes. I will kill you, and then I will leave this place and I will kill everyone you are trying to save. From the Gorons, who count you as a brother because you defeated their dragon to the Zoras, whom you are trying to save from an icy slumber to the Hylians, who still whisper tales of the 'Hero of Time,' and 'Savior of Hyrule,' under their breath when their new master's ears are closed, I will slaughter every single one. I will begin with the children; that is why I will go first to the forest, your old home. I suppose you know whose tree house I will visit first."

"Enough of your evil words! You may have a purpose, but your purpose is corrupt. I may have made mistakes, but I _will_ correct them, and in doing so, I will fulfill my purpose: to rid this world of Ganondorf. I have the Triforce of Courage-"

"You have no courage. I can see the fear in your eyes!"

"Courage is not the lack of fear, but the ability to overcome it! And while your master stole his power from the gods, my courage was bestowed upon me by their grace. You say I have nothing to fight for, but I fight for the lives that you intend to take! I fight for Saria, even if I can never love her, and I fight for Hyrule! What do you fight for, and what is your task? Do you fight for Ganondorf, who you whole-heartedly admit is evil? For destruction and arson? Do you fight only to destroy me?"

"… I fight for…"

"If you are everything I am not, what are you?"

"You are not a hero… I am…"

"I am a hero, and you are only my shadow."


End file.
